Things To Do After Installing Ubuntu 12.10 (Quantal Quetzal)

Ubuntu's latest version, that is, 12.10 (Quantal Quetzal) was released last week. With brand new features and updated applications, this release was an important milestone for Canonical. New features included an improved Unity experience, updated core applications, slight design improvements and a newer kernel. Many users were glad to find the new Previews feature in the Dash that lets them take a sneak peek at files and applications without opening them. Furthermore, a refreshed Nautilus, a revamped Empathy, and the game-changing web-apps feature make Ubuntu 12.10 one of best non-LTS releases ever.

If you're a new user switching to Ubuntu for the first time, you'll be surprised how stable and easy to use it is. But many users keep wondering about the things they'll have to do after a fresh install. If you're one of those people, here is a list of things you need to do after installing Ubuntu 12.10 (Quantal Quetzal):

Install Restricted Extras

If you want to rock out to the latest MP3s and watch movies in most of the popular formats, you'll need to install Ubuntu Restricted Extras. To do that, simply open up the terminal (Ctrl + Alt + T) and type in or paste the following command:

sudo apt-get install ubuntu-restricted-extras

Set Up Online Accounts

To make the most out of this release, make sure that you integrate your Ubuntu box with the best of the web. Once you do that, you'll be able to search your Google Docs (Google Drive) files right from the Dash. Moreover, you can search for photos you uploaded to your Picasa account without opening the browser. To setup online accounts, go to ‘System Settings’ and the look for ‘Online Accounts’.

Configure your Privacy

Once you start using Ubuntu, it will start logging all your recently used files so that you'll have a more personalized experience. However, if you're using a public computer, or if you're sharing your device with anyone, the logging becomes quite a bummer. To get rid of this problem, simply go to ‘Settings’, and then look for the option that says ‘Privacy’. Here, you can configure which apps are tracked and which aren't. Also, you can specify which folders you want to be excluded from the search results. Finally, if you want to clear your history, you can do that by using the ‘Forget Activities’ option.

Disable Online Search Results (a.k.a. Shopping Lens)

If you're tired of Amazon offers popping up on your computer every time you search, you can disable online search results in the same ‘Privacy Settings’ tab. If, however, you want to get rid of the Shopping Lens entirely, here is the command to do that:

sudo apt-get remove unity-lens-shopping

Enable DVD Playback

Ubuntu, by default, doesn't come with DVD playback. This means that on a fresh Ubuntu installation, you won’t be able to play your favorite movies. To fix that, you have to enable it by installing the right codecs. Here's a command that lets you do that easily:

sudo apt-get install libdvdread4

Install VLC

If you are one of those people who download a lot of movies, then the default movie player or even any other movie player is not half as versatile as VLC is. It is one of the best applications that the open-source community has ever produced. To install VLC, simply paste in the following command in your terminal:

sudo apt-get install vlc

Install New Applications

The Ubuntu Software Center has been revamped to make it faster and more easy to use. Simply click the orange shopping bag icon on the left and start looking for new applications.

Setup Ubuntu One

Ubuntu One offers 5GB of free online storage to its users. The service lets you sync all your files across various devices including Windows, Mac, and of course Ubuntu. To use it, you have to simply sign up for the service then login to your Ubuntu One account from it.

Change The Wallpaper

Ubuntu 12.10 comes with a fresh set of mind-blowing community wallpapers. Simply dress up your desktop with the one you like or you can set the wallpapers to auto-rotate from time to time.

Written by: Abhishek, a regular TechSource contributor and a long-time FOSS advocate.